Political Science | Penn Today

Ranked ‘avoid’: Ranked choice voting increases ballot errors

A study from Penn found that votes in ranked-choice races are nearly 10 times more likely to be rejected due to an improper mark than votes in non-ranked choice races.

Finding new ways to evaluate voters’ beliefs

In his dissertation research, joint communication and political science doctoral student Nicholas Dias searches for new ways to gauge voter competency.

A person touches a photo of Alexei Navalny after laying flowers at the Memorial to Victims of Political Repression in St. Petersburg, Russia.

Alexei Navalny’s death and legacy

Three experts from around the University share their thoughts on what Navalny’s death means for the opposition movement, for Putin’s grip on power, and for Russia going forward.

Lech Walesa and Trudy Rubin sit on a stage at Perry World House.

Lech Wałęsa on the state of democracy

The former Polish president and Nobel Peace Prize laureate had a wide-ranging chat with Philadelphia Inquirer columnist and Perry World House Visiting Fellow Trudy Rubin, tackling topics like Russia, Ukraine, and how to build democracies.

Donald Trump’s big election problem—‘likely voters’

Cary Coglianese of Penn Carey Law says that general polls feature members of the public who are expressing more of a feeling about the state of affairs, such as the economy, in comparison with voters who intend to go to the ballot box.

Three people sit on a stage in front of a screen reading Perry World House, University of Pennsylvania.

Two scholars on bridging difference to speak about the Middle East

In a conversation hosted by Perry World House, Omar Dajani, a Palestinian-American professor of law, and Mira Sucharov, a Canadian-Jewish professor of political science, shared their experience working together and discussed how despite their different views, they find ways to communicate and look for what they have in common.

A military vehicle drives through a hilly residential neighborhood in Quito, Ecuador. Two women, one holding hands with a young child, walk alongside on the street.

Q&A

Ecuador’s state of emergency

In a Q&A, political scientist Jane Esberg discusses democracy and organized crime in Latin America.

Local opinion: Democratic, Republican titles are misnomers

Research at Penn indicates that the core difference between conservatives and liberals is whether the world is intrinsically hierarchical, with conservatives believing more strongly that the world should demonstrate a stratified orderliness.

A blurry person walks past a sign on a window reading "Iowa Caucuses, first in the nation" with an illustration of an elephant and a donkey inside the "o" in Iowa.

Three things to know about the Iowa caucuses

John Lapinski, director of the Program on Opinion Research and Election Studies and director of elections at NBC News, shares his thoughts on what to watch Monday.

The last gasp of the Iowa kingmakers

Daniel Hopkins of the School of Arts & Sciences says that local politics is nationalizing, with voters more often considering how candidates fit into broader political brands rather than their adeptness at addressing local issues.

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